节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2012-08-03
难易度:Medium
关键字:stroll, competition, in a way, backyard, Renaissance, make one's mouth
water
Hi, everybody.
Welcome to Studio Classroom Worldwide.
My name is Steve.
Thanks for joining us today.
By definition, a festival must have a theme.
It has to celebrate something.
Last year, if you remember, we looked at a festival in Mid-America that had as
its theme - pumpkins.
And just last March, we traveled to a festival in New Zealand where strange and
exotic food was the guest of honor.
Well, in this month's FESTIVAL feature, we're going to highlight the Renaissance
fair.
Now what's the theme at a Renaissance fair?
Well, it's traveling back in time.
Let's learn more by opening to today's lesson on page 16.
(Music).
Renaissance Fairs.
Traveling back in time is more popular than ever.
Imagine that while walking through a park one day, you begin to notice strange
things all around you.
People in colorful costumes from centuries ago stroll the paths.
A juggler is doing amazing tricks.
Musicians play odd melodies on weird instruments.
Knights on horseback show their skills in riding competitions.
The smell of roasting meat begins to make your mouth water.
A pleasant voice shouts, "Good morrow!" What is going on?
Have you traveled back in time?
In a way, yes.
You have found yourself in the midst of a Renaissance fair!
Hello, friends.
Thank you so much for joining us here in the studio.
My name is Kaylah.
And my name is Ryan.
And friends, we are in our FESTIVALS article for this month.
So let's take a look at what festivals we're learning about today.
Now we're not talking about one specific festival.
Instead, we're looking at a kind of festival.
And that is a Renaissance fair.
That's right.
These are called Renaissance fairs.
Now we know that a fair is an event where people go, and there are games, there
are prizes and food.
But this is a Renaissance fair.
What is that?
Well, "Renaissance" refers to between the 14th and 17th century in Europe.
It was a time frame.
It's one of those like the... the Dark Ages or Modern Times.
The Renaissance covers one of those.
Now usually when we think of the Renaissance, we things of... think of knights
and shining armors and Gypsies dancing in the streets.
And that's kind of what this is like.
Absolutely.
This was a time when there was a change, or a shift, in a... literary works in
writing and in art.
And so you're going to see a lot of interesting pictures as when we're teaching
you this article.
That's right.
Now traveling back in time is more popular than ever.
We're saying that Renaissance festivals are more popular than ever, meaning
they're the most popular they have been since they got started.
Yeah. And I think, Kaylah, many people dream of being able to travel back in
time.
And so it's almost a reality with this.
Yeah. I think it's fun to travel - the idea of travelling back in time,
and to get to visit some exciting era like the Renaissance where so much
happened and so much changed that created the world today.
It's a fun and exciting experience.
All right, friends, now join us as we give you a scenario.
Now imagine that while you are walking through a park one day, you begin to
notice strange things all around you.
OK. So the first paragraph of our article is setting up the story,
setting up a word picture to help us understand what it would be like to
possibly attend a Renaissance festival.
OK. So you're walking through a park, there are strange, or weird, things around
you.
And you see people in colorful costumes from centuries ago strolling the paths.
OK. So costumes are outfits that you wear to create another character.
And from "centuries ago" means hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of years ago.
Now they're strolling along the paths of this park.
OK. Now if you're "strolling," that means you're walking slowly.
You're really relaxed.
You're not in a huge hurry.
So friends, you're seeing these people.
They are in costumes, and they're walking slowly along paths, or trails, in the
park.
Now if you want to imagine what some of these costumes might look like, if you
look on page 16 and 17 in your magazine,
you can see examples of some of the costumes you would see at a Renaissance
fair.
OK. And those costumes are what people used to wear when they were in the
Renaissance period.
Now you might also see a juggler doing amazing tricks.
That's right.
Now a juggler is someone who... we usually imagine them juggling balls.
It's when you keep the balls in the air.
You've got many balls.
You're keeping them in the air and not dropping them.
Now Kaylah, you actually learned a little bit how to juggle, right?
Oh, yes, but never for public.
I would never perform a juggling like these jugglers.
Darn! I was hoping you would do it.
Well, friends, you might be able to see people do these tricks, which are
special things that people can do, if you are at a Renaissance fair.
You might also see musicians playing odd melodies on weird instruments.
That's right.
Odd - something you don't recognize on a strange instrument.
Now knights on horseback show their skills in riding competitions.
Now you can see a picture of a knight on page 16 and see what that riding
competition might look like.
Yeah. And a "competition" is when... it's an event where you try and fight or
play against other people and try to win.
Now "on horseback" means they are riding the horse, not have the horse tied to a
carriage of any sort.
Well, next you smell roasting meat, and it begins to make your mouth water.
Hmm. Anything that "makes your mouth water" is delicious.
We use that phrase to describe when you are very hungry because something tastes
so good.
That's right.
You want to eat because the smell's so good, it's going to taste good.
Now usually the meat we eat are turkey legs at Renaissance fairs.
Now a pleasant voice shouts out: Good morrow!
"Good morrow," which is an old way of saying good day or hello.
So friends, you might be wondering all these strange things... What is going on?
Have you traveled back in time?
Well, in a way, yes, you have.
"In a way" is a phrase we use to say "to a certain extent," so.
"Kind of" is... is a shorter way of saying: in a way.
And you have found yourself in the midst of a Renaissance fair!
Now friends we'll explain that and more after we visit Liz with Grammar on the
Go and after we watch this video.
Hello, friends. I hope you're doing well today.
My name is Liz.
And it's time for Grammar on the Go.
We're talking about Renaissance fairs in today's article.
And we read: You have found yourself in the midst of a Renaissance fair!
That's our Grammar Tip sentence.
Notice the phrase, found yourself.
It does not mean you were lost, and then you found yourself.
Instead, it means you realize you are in a certain situation.
So what the writer is saying is you realize you are in a Renaissance fair.
We use this phrase, to find oneself, when we want to describe how a person is
suddenly aware of the place he or she is in.
For example:
The tourist was wandering around and suddenly found himself in someone's
backyard.
This phrase, to find oneself, can also be used to describe what the... what goes
on inside a person's head when they become aware of their situation.
For example:
After dating Trent for several years, Melinda found herself wondering if she
really wanted to be with him or not.
Now friends, if you have a copy of this month's Studio Classroom magazine with
you,
be sure to check out today's Grammar Tip section for more example sentences.
That's all the time we have for today.
Thanks for joining me here.
This is Liz with Grammar on the Go signing off.
Bye-bye.